It is useful, and in many locales a building code requirement, that the attic area of a building be provided with a means to permit air exchange. Such ventilation prevents undue heat buildup, which can render the living quarters of the building uncomfortable and impose unreasonable energy requirements for cooling. Proper ventilation of the attic area also tends to preserve the structural integrity of the roof and roof coverings. One method of venting the roof structure consists of applying a venting media over a slot present along the ridge of a roof. These types of vents are known as ridge vents.
Examples of ridge vents are provided by U.S. Pat. No. 5,960,595 issued to McCorsley et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,298,613 issued to Coulton et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,308,472 issued to Coulton et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,902,432 issued to Coulton et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,521 issued to Coulton et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,942,699 issued to Spinelli. These patents are owned, or co-owned, by Benjamin Obdyke, Inc., the assignee of the present application.
The above referenced McCorsley and Coulton '613 patents disclose roof ridge vents comprising a continuous, indeterminate-length, roll-form, openwork web, or mat, of randomly convoluted polymeric filaments. The mat is capable of being rolled lengthwise in a spiral roll after or during manufacture and unrolled lengthwise during installation on a roof ridge. A plurality of cusps, or hollow spacer elements, project from the upper face of the mat so that, when the apex portions of the cusps confront the roof surface, the upper face of the mat is spaced from the roof surface thereby creating a path for air flow between the shingles overlying the upper face of the vent and the underlying roof. A continuous air permeable fabric backing is thermally bonded to the cusps of the mat to prevent weather and insect infiltration into the attic space.
While the roof ridge vents disclosed in the above referenced patents function in a superior manner, there continues to be a need for further improvements with respect to roof ridge vents and their installation. To this end, an increased amount of ventilating air flow through the ridge vent is desired without compromising weather infiltration resistance. In addition, a ridge vent that can be accurately aligned over a roof ridge in a simplified and efficient manner is desired. Further, the vent should be capable of being manufactured economically and formed into a roll for shipping, transportation and subsequent installation.